Leviticus 19:17
in Leviticus 19You must not harbor hatred against your brother in your heart. Directly rebuke your neighbor, so that you will not incur guilt on account of him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart: thou shalt surely rebuke thy neighbor, and not bear sin because of him.
KJV
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.
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This verse in Leviticus 19
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Not suffer sin upon him - Rather, not hear sin on his account; that is, either by bearing secret ill-will Eph 4:26, or by encouraging him to sin in withholding due rebuke Rom 1:32.
This site's exposition
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart
The command reaches inside a man, because hatred in the heart is forbidden here where no act has followed it. The remedy the verse gives is speech, an open rebuke standing in the place where a grudge would otherwise sit. Matthew 18:15 carries the same order into the church, telling a man to go and tell his brother his fault between them alone. The closing clause, and not suffer sin upon him, makes silence the thing that leaves the sin standing.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
21 And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the L ORD , unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, even a ram for a trespass offering. 22 And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the L ORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:94%@v21-22
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart,....
We are ready to argue thus, "Such a one is a friend I love, therefore I will not make him uneasy by telling him of his faults;" but we should rather say, "therefore I will do him the kindness to tell him of them." Love covers sin from others, but not from the sinner himself. (2.) The mischief we do by not reproving: we suffer sin upon him.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Thou shalt not hate thy brother - Thou shalt not only not do him any kind of evil, but thou shalt harbor no hatred in thy heart towards him. On the contrary, thou shalt love him as thyself, Lev 19:18. Many persons suppose, from misunderstanding our Lord’s words, Joh 13:34, A new commandment give I unto you, that ye love one another, etc., that loving our neighbor as ourselves was first instituted under the Gospel. This verse shows the opinion to be unfounded: but to love another as Christ has loved us, i. e., to lay down our lives for each other, is certainly a new commandment; we have it simply on the authority of Jesus Christ alone. And not suffer sin upon him - If thou see him sin, or know him to be addicted to any thing by which the safety of his soul is endangered, thou shalt mildly and affectionately reprove him, and by no means permit him to go on without counsel and advice in a way that is leading him to perdition. In a multitude of cases timely reproof has been the means of saving the soul. Speak to him privately if possible; if not, write to him in such a way that himself alone shall see it.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִשְׂנָ֥א | tisna' | you will hate | H8130 → | |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אָחִ֖יךָ | ʾachikha | brother your | H251 → | 630 times |
| בִּלְבָבֶ֑ךָ | bilvavekha | in heart your | H3824 → | 252 times |
| הוֹכֵ֤חַ | hokheach | certainly <to rebuke> | H3198 → | |
| תּוֹכִ֙יחַ֙ | tokhiach | you will rebuke | H3198 → | |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| עֲמִיתֶ֔ךָ | ʾamitekha | fellow citizen your | H5997 → | 12 times |
| וְלֹא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִשָּׂ֥א | tisa' | you will bear | H5375 → | 656 times |
| עָלָ֖יו | ʾalav | on him | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| חֵֽטְא׃ | chet' | sin | H2399 → | 33 times |
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
תִשְׂנָ֥אyou will hate
tisna'H8130 →
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אָחִ֖יךָbrother your
ʾachikhaH251 →630 times
בִּלְבָבֶ֑ךָin heart your
bilvavekhaH3824 →252 times
הוֹכֵ֤חַcertainly <to rebuke>
hokheachH3198 →
תּוֹכִ֙יחַ֙you will rebuke
tokhiachH3198 →
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
עֲמִיתֶ֔ךָfellow citizen your
ʾamitekhaH5997 →12 times
וְלֹא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
תִשָּׂ֥אyou will bear
tisa'H5375 →656 times
עָלָ֖יוon him
ʾalavH5921 →5755 times
חֵֽטְא׃sin
chet'H2399 →33 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 John 2:9If anyone claims to be in the light but hates his brother, he is still in the darkness.
it leads to
- 1 John 4:20
If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
- 1 John 2:11
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness. He does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
- 1 John 3:13–17
So do not be surprised, brothers, if the world hates you.
- Psalms 82:5
They do not know or understand; they wander in the darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
- 1 John 4:20
Through
1 John 2:11But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness. He does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
it leads to
- John 12:35
Then Jesus told them, “For a little while longer, the Light will be among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you. The one who walks in the…
- John 12:35
Through
Luke 17:3Watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.
it leads to
- Matthew 18:21
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
- Proverbs 9:8
Do not rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.
- Matthew 18:15–17
If your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.
- Matthew 18:21
Where this verse is studied
About Leviticus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Andrew Bonar, A Commentary on Leviticus; John Calvin, Commentary on the Four Last Books of Moses Arranged in the Form of a Harmony; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.